Adjustable layout and mitering tool



March 29, 1955 E. zoPHEL Y 2,705,029

ADJUSTABLE LAYOUT AND MITER'ING Toor.

Filed April 26, 1949 2 sheets-sheet 1 A QW 1I/J'- l" 2/ j A' 5 rgr INVENTOR. 3 Zinzi] lalala/el ,March 29, 1955 E. zoPHEL 2,705,029

ADJUSTABLE LAYOUT AND MITERING Toor.

Filed April 26, 1949 2 Sheets-Sheet '2 INVENTOR.

125ml4 Zap/wz dlmwm United States Patent() ADJUSTABLE LAYOUT AND MITERING TOOL Emil Zophel, Concord Township, Miami County, Ohio Application April 26, 1949, Serial No. 89,711

3 Claims. (Cl. 143-88) This invention relates to a combination tool designed to serve as a guide for cutting and layout purposes.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a combination saw guide, miter gauge and layout guide. The tool may be used for wood workers cutting and as a layout guide for both wood working and metal working purposes. lt can also be used as a guide for electric handrouting machines; both for straight routing and for radius routing. The unit is light in weight, durable and simple to assemble or disassemble. It is intended for the use of carpenters, wood workers and mechanics.

An important feature of this invention resides in the combination of such a tool with a quick detachable clamp whereby the combination tool may be quickly and positively attached to the work piece for eflicient use either as a saw guide or a layout guide. The particular quick detachable clamp which is a part of my invention is self-adjusting whereby the same may readily and easily be made to embrace work pieces of various thicknesses.

Another object of my invention is the provision of a combination saw guide and layout guide in which a straight edge member is adjustably mounted on a quick detachable clamping member, both for rotational movement of the straight edge member and for relative movement between the straight edge member and the clamp in a direction longitudinally of the straight edge member. The rotational movement can be measured by indexing means associated with the clamping member. The movement of the straight edge member with relation to the clamp in a direction longitudinally of the straight edge member adapts the instrument to be used as a layout guide regardless of relatively large variations in the size of the work piece.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the following detailed description'having particular reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views, and in which:

Fig. l is a top plan view of the combination tool in position on a work piece;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the combination tool in the position corresponding to Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view along the lines 3-3 of Fig. l in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1 in the direction of the arrows; and

Fig. 5 is an end elevation of the straight edge member shown in Fig. l, showing one of the saw guide members adjustably mounted thereon.

Referring particularly to the drawings, the tool comprises a quick detachable clamp consisting of a web plate 1 and an upper clamping plate 2 shown integral therewith in the drawings and extending in a direction approximately normal thereto. A shaft 3 is rotatably mounted on the web plate 1 with its axis approximately normal to the plane thereof. Secured to the inner end of the shaft 3 is an arcuate lower clamping element 4. The lower clamping element is preferably corrugated as best shown in Fig. 3 to provide a more positive pressure contact with the under surface of a work piece. At the outer end of the shaft 3 a hand wheel 5 is provided for manual release of the quick detachable clamp. The hand wheel is secured to the shaft by convenient means as by means of the spacer 6 and nut 7, both of which may be threadedly 5 justed rotatably on the shaft by means of lock nut 7 so that the spring member 8 is pre-stressed somewhat to urge the hand wheel and hence the lower clamping member 4 in a clock-wise direction, looking at Fig. 2. The spring member 8 thus serves to apply clamping pressure between the upper and lower clamping members 2 and 4 and the curved configuration of the lower clamping member 4 provides a suitable clamping surface for work pieces of various thicknesses.

It has heretofore been customary in tools of this general nature to provide mere work-engaging rails or surfaces which enable the workman to hold the tool in place on a work piece, but this requires the use of one hand to` retain the tool in position. It would, of course, be impractical to provide a conventional clamp because of the nuisance associated with repeated adjustments and the tightening and loosening of such clamps. Furthermore, it has not been customary to adapt such a tool as a layout guide. It is desirable that the tool be rather securely clamped in position for this purpose. With applicants specic clamping means the device is readily changed from one work piece to another and at the same time provides a rather positive clamping action when applied to a work piece.

The upper clamping plate 2 carries an upstanding threaded shaft 11 on which is rotatably mounted a circular index plate 12. The index plate 12 is preferably cup-shaped, as shown, and bears a reference mark thereon to indicate the angular adjustment of the index plate with reference to suitable indicia on the surface of the upper clamping plate 2 (see Fig. 1). Suitable locking means such as the hand wheel 13 threaded on shaft 11 is provided adjustably to lock the index plate 12 on the upper clamping plate 2.

A bracket member 14 extends radially outwardly from the index plate 12 and may be rigidly secured thereto or be integral therewith as shown. The bracket member 14 is raised slightly upwardly from the plane of the outer periphery of the index plate 12 and is adapted to tit rather closely within the embrace of the outer, downwardly directed anges of a channel-shaped straight edge member 15. One of the downwardly directed flanges of the straight edge member 15 is of suicient length that its edge is adapted to rest on the upper surface of the work piece, as indicated in Fig. 3. The other downwardly directed flange of the straight edge member is shorter and of a` length such that its lower edge rests on the upper surface of the index plate 12, as also shown in Fig. 3. There is suflicient clearance between the bracket member 14 within the channel of the straight edge member to permit relative adjustment longitudinally of the straight edge 15. The bracket member 14 is apertured and the straight edge member 15 is provided with a longitudinal slot 16. A suitable clamping arrangement such as that shown in the drawing which includes the wing nut 17 may be provided for locking the straight edge member in adjusted position. This longitudinal adjustment of the straight edge member is important to the use of 'the combination tool as a layout guide since it enables the use of the tool for this purpose where the work piece is of considerable area.

A pair of saw guides 18 are clamped to the straight edge member by means of angularly adjustable brackets. These brackets have a pair of arcuate sections 19 and 20 pivotally clamped to one another as by means of a clamping nut 23 attached to one of the arcuate members and threadedly receiving a clamping lever 24. The larger arcuate members 20 bear suitable indicia to indicate the angular adjustment of the brackets; and as shown in Figs. 2 and 5, particularly, the arcuate members 19 and 20 may also bear co-acting projections and indentations serving as a detent means positively to position the saw guide members in angular adjustment relative to the straight edge member. These detent means may conveniently be provided by a series of heavy punch marks in one of the arcuate members, as for example, the member 20. A

single cooperating punch mark in each of the arcuate members 19 may conveniently provide projections in the arcuate members 19 provided the punch marks are heavy enough to deform both sides of the arcuate member 19,

The arcuate members 20 may be rigidly attached and are preferably integral with attaching bracket members 21; Each of these bracket members is channel shaped in dross section to embrace the upper surface of the straight edge member as shown in Figs. 2 and 5. Suitable clamp means such as those including wing nuts 22 are provided for adjustably clamping the saw guide brackets to the straight edge member 15.

As shown in Fig. 5, the saw guide brackets ailord a miter gauge adjustment of the saw guides.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the speciiic details of construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the drawings since it is capable of other embodiments which come within the scope of the following claims.

' I'claim:

1. A combination cutting and layout guide comprising a quick detachable clamp to secure the same to a work piece, said clamp comprising a web plate to which is rigidly attached an upper clamping plate extending in aplane approximately normal to the plane of said web plate, a shaft rotatably carried by said web plate, a selfadjusting lower clamping member consisting of an arcuate lever having one end attached to said shaft, spring means urging said arcuate lever in a rotational direction about the, axis of said shaft to supply clamping action between said arcuate lever and said upper clamping plate, manually operable means associated with said shaft and said arcuate lever to overcome the clamping force exerted by said spring means, an index plate rotatably mounted on said upper clampingplate by adjustable locking means for rotational adjustment of said index plate in a plane parallel to the plane of said upper clamping plate, a bracket member carried by said index plate, a straight edge memberV carried by said bracket member, releasable clamping means to mount adjustably the straight edge member on said bracket member for relative adjustment longitudinally of said straight edge member, saw guides adjustably mounted on said straight edge member for movement longitudinally of said straight edge member by means ofmiter gauge brackets releasably clamped to 'said straight edge member, said miter gauge brackets comprising releasably clamped sections relatively rotatable 'with respect to one another toy adjustably position the plane of a saw within said saw guide with relation to the upper plane of the work piece in said quick detachable clamp.

2. A combination layout guide and saw guide for attachment to a work piece comprising a `quick detachable clamp to attach the tool to said work piece, said clamp comprising a web plate having an upper clamping plate member rigidly carried thereon and extending in a plane approximately normal to the plane of said web plate, a manually rotatable shaft rotatably mounted on said web plate with its axis normal thereto, an arcuately shaped lower clamping member rigidly 'carried by said rotatable shaft with the plane of the arc generally normal to the axis of said shaft, spring means attached at one end to said shaft and said arcuate clamping member and at the other end to said web plate, said spring means urging said lower arcuate clamping member against said upper clamping plate by rotation of said shaft, manually operable means associated with said shaft to open the clamp against the action of said spring means, an index plate rotatably clamped to said upper clamping plate, said index plate bearing an index mark to cooperate with suitable indicia on the upper surface of said upper clamping plate, a bracket member carried by said index plate, a straight edge member clamped to said bracket member in a position tangent to said index plate and adjustable in a direction longitudinal of said straight edge member, saw guides adjustably clamped on said straight edge member by means of `angularly adjustable bracket means provid* ing miter gauge adjustments of said saw guides, said angularly adjustable brackets being shiftable on said straight edge member in a direction longitudinal of the latter.

3. A layout guide comprising a quick detachable clamp releasably to secure said layout guide to a work piece, said clamp comprising a web plate having an upper clamping plate member rigidly carried thereon and extending in a plane approximately normal to the plane of said web plate, a manually rotatable shaft rotatably mounted on said web plate with its axis normal thereto, an arcuately shaped lower clamping member rigidly carried by said rotatable shaft with the plane of the arc generally normal to the axis of said shaft, spring means attached at one end to said shaft and said arcuate clamping member and at the other end to said web plate, said spring means urging said lower arcuate clamping member against said upper clamping plate by rotation of said shaft, manually operable means associated with said shaft to open the clamp against the action of said spring means, a straight edge linear measuring member, means to adjustably clamp said member to the upper clamping plate of said quick detachable clamp member for adjustment of said member with Vrespect to said clamp in a direction longitudinal of said member and also for rotational movement of said member with respect to said clamp, the main plane of said straight edge member being confined to movement in a plane parallel to the upper surface of a work piece embraced by said quick detachable clamp.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 630,900 Kohl Aug. 15, 1899 842,489 Overholt Jan. 29, 19.0.7 867,927 Potter 1 Oct. 8, 1907 920,708 Winkler May 4, 1909 1,064,346 Koch June l0, 1913 1,233,083 McMillan July 10, 1917 1,534,957 Hurley Apr. 21, 1925 1,535,042 Sadler Apr. 21, 1925 1,617,207 Fleisher Feb. 8, 1927 2,399,579 Smith Apr. 30, 1946 l2,458,188 Moran Jan. 4, 1949 

